Engine-starter.



D. G. WILGUS.

ENGINE STARTER.

manna-non nun my 29,1007.

Patented May 18, 1909.

will prevent ,the startinglever from the engine shaft and DANIEL (I.WILGUS, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

' iiiwmnfs'raa'raa.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 18, 1909.

f 1 Application filed Kay 29, 1907-. Serial No. 876,350:

T e all whom' it may concern;

tem of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of LosAngeles and have invented new and which the followin is a specification.

My invention re ates to an engine starter which is adapted to beattached to motor cars provided with explosion motors which have to bestarted by some outside source of power.

The prime object of my invention is to rovide an engine starter forautomobiles w iich' may be operated from the driving seat of the 'car.

A further ob'ect is to rovide means whereby a large feverage is o)tained so as to render the starting of the engine easy,v

A further object is to provide means whereby the starting mechanism isautomaticall thrown out of connection with the engine s aft while theengine is running.

-A further object is to provide a starter which may be attached to anycar without making any alterations in the mechanism of the car.

A further object is to provide means which the accidental displacementof thereby cause damage to the car or the operator.

I accomplish these objects by means of the. device described herein andillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which 1 Figure 1- is anelevation of the rear portion of a motor car equipped with my improvedstarter. Fig. 2-1S an elevation of the starting mechanism, the casingbeing removed. Fig. 3- is a vertical section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2with the casing in place. Fig. 4 is a detail of the holding clip for thestarting lever and showing the lock attached thereto.

Referring to "the drawings, 5 designates an automobile provided withbody 6, under frame 7, driving wheels 8 and engine 9. Engine 9 ismounted underneath the under frame on transverse drive shaft 10 (seeFigs 3) which is connected to drive wheels 8 by sprocket chain 11. Shaft10 is provided with a pin 12 with which a ratchet clutch sleeve 13 isadapted to engage, being pressed into engagement by Mail spring 14 atthe outer end of sleeve 13. Sleeve 13 is mountwith a hardened flange 30ed partly on shaft 10 and artliy on stud 15 forming a continuation of tlitt s iaft and provided witl a hexagon end 16 which projects throu hcasing 17 and provides means Where y shaft It) may be turned to startthe engine should the starting mechanism become disabled.

Clutch sleeve 13 carries a gear 18 which is adapted to mesh with asector ear 1 19 mounted on stud 20 secured to p ate 31 which is in turnbolted to the under frame 7 of the car. Lever 22 is bolted to sector1!),

projecting upwardly through a slot 23 in ,casing 17 and being providedwith a handle 24 on its upper end which is situated corn veniently formanipulation of the lever'from the driving seat. Stud 20 is rigidlyattached at its outer end to a bar 25, in the lower end of which stud 15is journaled and which serves to rigidly connect the two studs 13 isalso provided against which a flat spring 31 attached to sector 19 isadapted to presswhen the starting mechanism is in its normal position asshown in the drawings. Spring 31 is stronger than spring 14 so that whenspring 31 contacts with flange clutch sleeve 13 is forced outwardly andout of ongagement with pin 12 on shaft 10 so that together. Clutchsleeve shaft 10 may rotate without the pin rubbing 5 over the ratcl etteeth on the clutch sleeve. \l'hen lever 22 is moved forwardly, spring31 moves out of engagement with flange 30 and spring 14 forces sleeve 13into engagement with pin 12 and the mechanism is in position to startthe engine.

The operation of my device is as follows: Lever 22 is moved forwardluntil it contacts with stop 32 on plate 21 w on clutch sleeve 13 will bein operative engagement with pin 12. Lever 22 is then moved rearwardlyas indicated by the arrow in Fig. .3 and sleeve 13 is thereby rotated inthe direction shown by the arrow in the same figure, rotating shaft 10in the same direction. It will be observed from the general arrangementin Fig. 1 that this direction of rotation is the one required for thestarting of the engine, and, being started, the engine will rotate theshaft in that same direction. Meanwhile lever 22 has been moved back toits original position and spring 31 has contacted with 35 is providedwith I same by originally on the car or one especially fitted clip 35 isprovided on the side of the body of theear into which lever 2:2 isslipped when in itsnormal position so as to provide against 1 anyaccidental. displacement thereof. Clip I a lock 36 with its spring bolt37 projectin across 0 ening 38 into which lever 22 is p aced.

eans for opening a lock and releasing the By the means above 1 describedno one the owner of the ear may start the same as it is impossible forany one else to unlock the starting lever so as to start the engine;

-It will be observed that I have provided a starter for automobile enines which is adaptable to any automobi e whether that automobile beprovided with a transverse drive shaft or not, as it is only necessaryto put in a transverse shaft and connect the bevel gearing or the likewith the longitudinal shaft with whiclp all automo-, biles are providedwhen not provided with a transverse guide shaft. The transverse shafthereinbei'ore referred to may be either one yer from the (118.

to the car forthe purposes of my starter.

It will further be observed that my starter is extremely simple inconstruction and operation and enables the driver to start the car withvery little effort.

it will further be observed that the starting mechanism is automaticallythrown out of engagement withthe engine shaft at all times except whenthe engine is being started, so that no accidental injury is liable tooccur to thestarting mechanism 1) contact with the pin on the engineshaft w lile the engine i is running.

Havin described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure byLetters Patent is ev 1. In an automobile engine starter, engag- A :ey 39provides silient means mounted on d on the engine ing meansrigidly'mounte mounted on shaft, a ratchet sleeve loose y said shaft andspring: pressu into engagement with said en lglng means. a pinionforming an inteigra part of said chet sleeve, a manna y o eluted sectorad ted to engage. with sai pinion, and resiient moans secured to saidseetor, whereby said ratchet sleeve is forced out at engagementwithsaidengaging means. i

.2. In an, automobile engine starter, a clutch mounted on the en ineshaft, one member of said clutch being oosely mounted thereon the other'memberbeing rigidly secured thereto, resilient means to force saidmembers. into engagement with each other, means to rotate the loosemember, and resaid rotating means to engage with the looseclutchmemherand to ioree said members out of engagement with each other.

3. In an automobile engine starter, a in rigidly mounted on the engineshaft, 9. rate et sleeve loosely mounted on i said shaft adapted toengage with said pin, resillent means to force said ratchet sleeveintoengagement with said pin, a pinion on said, ratchet sleeve, a sectorprovided with an operating lever and adapted toengage with said pinion,said sector bein piv'otally mounted on the under frame of t eautomobile, a flange on said ratchetsleeve, and a sprin on said sectoradapted to contact with said ange and to force said ratchet sleeve withsaid pin.

I claim the fore oing I- t iis 21st out of engagement In witness thathave hereunto subscribed my name day olMay, 1907. V DANIEL C. WILGUS.Witnesses:

TRIMBLE BARKELEW, Emnmn A. SIR'AUSE.

